Narrative:The FH-227 departed Quito at 10:38 for a 37-minute flight to fly workers to an oil site in the Amazon jungle. The VFR flight was conducted at an altitude of 15,500 feet. At 10:50 the crew contacted the Nueva Loja Tower at Lago Agrio and reported near Olmedo. The Tower controller reported that runway 23 was in use and that the weather included a 6 knot wind at 020 degrees, temperature 29 degrees. The crew were then to have turned from 064 to 094 degrees, direct to Lago Agrio. They failed to do so and continued their present heading. After reporting 50 miles out at 10:59, they were cleared to descend. This was the last contact with the flight. The crew continued their descent until the airplane flew into the fog-shrouded side of El Tigre Mountain at an elevation of 11,916 feet.

This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path. Distance from Quito-Mariscal Sucre Airport to Lago Agrio Airport as the crow flies is 181 km (113 miles).